Brats is a reminder old wounds can calcify and scab over turning into the foundation for something all the more beautiful.

| Apr 4, 2025

Brats is part documentary film part therapy project that evolves into a compelling humanization of a former movie star.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Dec 18, 2024

Brats is exactly what you want it to be. A no holds look at one of the most interesting peer groups in pop culture and a deep dive into what it was actually like to be in it as well as where it all went wrong.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Dec 9, 2024

A lightly-indulgent passion project that leaves us wanting so much more.

| Aug 8, 2024

A story that needed a personal touch and as McCarthy probes Blum for an apology, you can’t help but be invested in his journey for closure, while also being impressed by the responses from his fellow mature thespians, once portrayed as callow youths.

| Jul 26, 2024

'Brats' is basically a therapy session for Andrew, the Brat Pack's most tormented member, but it's nice to catch up with Rob, Demi, Emilio, Ally, and the gang.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 23, 2024

We’re treated to some insightful and revealing conversations....great archive footage of old interviews, movie clips, and behind the scenes video. It makes for an interesting and nostalgic retrospective for those of us who grew up in the Brat Pack era.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Jul 15, 2024

A fascinating documentary. I applaud Andrew McCarthy for making it.

| Jul 13, 2024

What Brats does well, however, is reacquaint you with some very good films – especially those of the late John Hughes – and to the idea that this period of moviemaking was unique for a more nuanced foregrounding of the late-teen experience...

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 12, 2024

That one man’s offhand pun could be another man’s life-long pain is an affecting reminder of the ease with which we can hurt others and the difficulty of letting go.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 12, 2024

Sure, McCarthy was trying to extend his career with this very personal reality show, but he also seems to be genuinely interested in learning from his past and grow past it, and that’s never a bad idea.

| Jul 9, 2024

By the end, you’re hoping McCarthy has got it all out of his system. Better to be remembered for the Brat Pack years than for the self-indulgence of Brats.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 8, 2024

…flawed by missing out on key interviews, Brats comes to some kind of cathartic conclusion for Andrew McCarthy; it’s not the media, the movies or the music, it’s nostalgia that makes audiences recall the Brat Pack as ‘avatars of their youth...

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 7, 2024

Thanks to Andrew McCarthy for catching us up with the Brat Pack

| Original Score: 6/10 | Jul 6, 2024

What elevates all of this from navel-gazing bitterness is McCarthy’s increasing awareness that, much as he may have wished otherwise, he really was part of a cultural moment.

| Jul 5, 2024

Three words coined four decades ago might appear to be a flimsy framework for a documentary but Brats uses a deceptively light touch to both indulge movie-star memories and start a sharp conversation about purpose and self-belief.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Jul 5, 2024

It’s not very good, but it’s also hard to resist for how strange a ride it is.

| Jul 3, 2024

An introspective journey that grows into a deep dive into the psychology of fame and the weight of labels. This is a terrific film, especially if you’re interested in the subjects.

| Jul 2, 2024

One has to admire Andrew McCarthy for allowing his interview subjects to contradict his thesis.

| Jul 1, 2024

The documentary is still a lovely hit of nostalgia, peppered with clips and interviews (Ally Sheedy is sweet, Jon Cryer is funny, Timothy Hutton talks about bees) and includes insights from various contributors as to why the films were so potent.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 1, 2024